Hoist mechanism



March 6, 1951 L. 1. EAKIN HOIST MECHANISM 2 Shets-Sheet 1 Filed Dec. 19, 1947 @170 for: l\ Zoazyzkilblkh arch 6, 1953 L EAKIN HOIST MECHANISM 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Dec. 19, 1947 mmwmmmmlt Fatented Mar. 6, 1951 UNITED- PATENT OFFICE Lorrie-L.

ent re, n't.

Al o eati m Dec ber 9 Serial Ne-fii' lhw i 1 This invention relates to apparatus for hane dling various objects, iand'more particularly toyan apparatus for liftingobijects and transferring them to various locations.

Derricks having a pivoted boom are, employed n a e on ue i l iormser in relati ely-sm ll a e s- The p se ho sting p aratus was tiesigned particularly for use on such vehieles, grin in nloa i g ob ec s e ra y f e eht ar onto a motor truck, or onto a r ig t platform Q1? transferring objects from a truck or platform nto a flatcar. ship. o o r een eyanee.

Qne object of my invention is to provide ape para us, o he character efe red t which in si s of a oom pivoted on a fixed he ize i al. axis n a platform other fixed s e ed. a c are r d o a vertic l. axis on the be i o rivet in a horizon al plane. 'fl'exf Ii connected between the support. and

m pe i e t m inta n t e cr ne a horizontal position during all positions of 'ang ar dj s of h boom, cable passing o er a pulley at the distal end of the ane arm for supporting an object to be lifted, a winch for winding the cableto lift the object, hydraulic means for pivoting the boom to difierent angular positions, and hydraulic means for turning the crane arm on its vertical position so as to swing the arm in a horizontal plane and carry the object to a new location where it can be deposited by paying out the cable. By this novel combination of parts, it is unnecessaryto rotate the entire boom to swing the lifted object laterally to a location where it is to be deposited, the crane arm being employed solely for this purpose, and thus the structure is greatly-simplified and made universal in operation. it will be apparent that such a hoisting apparatus can be mounted on a platform adjacent a railroad track to adapt it to lift ob" jects from a railroad car and deposit them on the platform or upon a truck disposed adjacent the platform. Likewise, the apparatus can be m stalled on a ship and advantageously employed for loading objects onto or unloading them therefrom, As another example of it use, the apparatus can be conveniently mounted on the platform 6 Elaine (01...: else-59).

\ confined areas and is es eci l y su tab e fe u of'a motor "truck, since it occupies 'a minimum of space, and can be readily folded down in close proximity to the truck platform, when not in use, sothat it will not interfere with the. operation of the t-i uek.

Another object is to provide an apparatus of the type indicated in which the boom and crane arm can be simultaneously pivoted by remotely controlled means so that :an object can be lifted, moved forwardly or rearwardly and swung late orally at the same time, thereby expediting the loading or unloading operation and providing smooth operation of theappara'tus.

Further objects of the invention are set forth in the following description which discloses a preferred embodiment or the apparatus, by wayof example, as illustrated by the accompanying drawings. In the drawings:-

' Fig. l is a side View of'my improved apparatus;

Fig. 2 is a plan view-thereof; and,

3 is a cross-sectional View, taken on line 3'3 of Fig. 1.

Referring to the drawings in detail, I have therein shown the hoisting apparatus as mounted on a conventional support 5 which may be considered, for the purpose of illustration, as the platform of a motor truck, although it will beunderstood that the apparatus is adapted for use in'con junction'witn various other supports, either movable or stationary. Extending transversely of; and rotatable on the support is a shaft or axle 6, to the projecting ends of which are come nec'ted the ends of the opposite legs or side meme hers I of a substantially U-shaped boom 8 have ing a cross member Bat its distal end. The boom 8 may be of the type disclosed in my prior applications, Serial Nos. 712,652 and 746,248, filed November '27, 1946, and'May 6,, 1947., respeetively, and, as shown, its side members *I may have offset portions I at their outer ends. Extendingbetween the offset portions of the side members 1 is a transverse rod [0, herein-.- after referred to as the second horizontal pivotal axis.

Pivotally mounted on the axis 10 is a holder H which, as shown in Figs. 2 and 3, may comprise a block having an extension [3. The block H is provided with aslot at one side for receiving an end or a crane arm I 5, which is keyed to a pin orshaft l6 rotatable in" holes in the upper and lower sides of the slot. The arm 15 carries a pulleyor sheave l8-at its outer or forward end and an anchor-pin 59 disposed rearwardly of the pulley. Projecting upwardly from the block I! is aforked standard Ml, at the upperend of 3 which is a cable guide element 2|. A cable 22 passes over the guide element 2| and pulley l8 and has a hook 23 at one end adapted to support an object to be lifted. The other end of the cable may be connected to the wind-up drum of a winch 24 on the support 5.

A segmental grooved element 25 is attached to the block II and standard 20 with its grooved portion arranged concentric with the axis H]. A cable 26 extends through the groove of the segmental element 25 and has one end fastened to the anchor pin I9. The other end of the cable 26 is joined to a transverse rod 21 on the support 5. It is to be noted that the distance between the axis 8 and the rod 21 is equal to the radius of the grooved element 25, so that the length 28 of the cable 26 extending between the element and the rod 21 is parallel to an imaginary line 29 extending between the two pivotal axes 6 and [8. In other words, the length 28 of the cable 28 and the line 29 form the opposite long sides of'a parallelogram, the short sides of which are represented, respectively, by the radial line 39 and the line 3| in Fig. 1. It will be apparent that, due to the parallelogram arrangement of the parts, the crane arm l will remain parallel to the line 3|, or, in other words, in a true horizontal position regardless of the angular position of the boom 8. The arm l5 may, however, pivot in a horizontal plane, as indicated in Fig. 2, under the action of a hydraulic actuator 35. The actuator 35 consists of a cylinder 36 mounted on the block II and having a piston rod 31 provided with rack teeth-at its outer end adapted to mesh with the teeth of a small gear 38 carried by the pivot shaft l6. By this construction, when the piston rod 31 is moved, the shaft I6 and arm are rotated, the direction of such rotation depending upon the direction of movement of the piston rod. The hydraulic actuator may be controlled by a suitable selector valve, not shown, located remotely therefrom.

' The boom 8 may be pivoted on its axis 6 by power means, the present drawings showing a hydraulic actuator 40 for this purpose. The piston rod 4| of the hydraulic actuator 48' is connected to an arm 42 carried by the axle 6, so that when hydraulic fluid is introduced into either end of the actuator cylinder under pressure and the piston rod is accordingly slid the axle 6 is turned and the boom 8 thus pivoted to desired angular positions. The hydraulic actuating means may be of the type disclosed in my pending application, Serial No.746,248, filed May 6,1947, and is therefore not described in detail herein.

Assuming that it is desired to unload an object X from the position A (Fig, 2) on a conveyance, such as the railroad flatcar 45, indicated in Fig. 1, and to deposit the object at alocation D upon the support 5, the hydraulic actuator 48 is operated to pivot the boom 8 from the retracted position shown by full lines to the extended position indicated by the dash lines in Fig. 1. During this pivotal movement the crane arm I5 is carried forwardly by the boom 8, and, because the length 28 of the cable 28 remains parallel to the line 29, the crane arm remains in true horizontal position at all times so that the pulley [8 at its end is disposed above the object X to be lifted. When a selector valve (not shown) in the hydraulic circuit for the actuator 48 is operated to prevent escape of fluid from the ends of the. y ra l nd r. the n hois in an:

paratus is locked against pivotal movement in either direction so that collapse is prevented.

The hook 23 of the cable 22 is next fastened to the object X and the winch 24 operated to wind up the cable and thereby raise the object. It will be noted that the cable 26, in addition to maintaining the crane arm I5 in horizontal position, also serves as a guy in strengthening the arm so that the arm is capable of supporting considerable weight at its end. With the object X thus suspended, the hydraulic actuator 40 is caused to pivot the boom 8 rearwardly toward the position shown by full lines in Fig. 1, the winch being simultaneously operated to wind the cable 22 to maintain the object at a desired height. After the object has been moved to a position above a selected location on the platform 5, as shown at D in Fig. 2, the actuator 40 is locked and the cable 22 unwound to permit the object to descend onto the support 5. If an object is to be transferred from position D to position A, the procedure explained above is reversed.

When it is desirable to transfer an object from position A to a location B or C disposed laterally thereof, the object is first lifted and the hydraulic jack 35 is thereafter energized to cause its piston rod 31 to move in the appropriate direction. Movement of the piston rod 31 and its rack teeth causes rotation of the gear 38 so that the crane arm [5 is pivoted on the vertical axis IE to move its pulley l8 and the object to the selected position B or C, after which the actuator 35 is locked and-the cable 22 paid out to cause the object to descend onto a motor truck, railroad car, or other conveyance, or upon a stationary platform at the location B or C.

It will be apparent from the foregoing that, by the use of my improved apparatus, objects can be transferred from A to D, or vice versa, from A to B or from A to C, and vice versa, and from B to C, and vice versa, and to any position intermediate any of these locations. It is thus seen that the apparatus is universal in operation, and, because the crane arm I5 is pivoted intermediate the ends of the boom 8, it is unnecessary to provide means for pivoting the boom on a vertical axis to permit the objects to be swung to positions laterally of the base or support of the boom. It is obvious that the relative lengths of the boom 8 and crane arm [5 can be varied in accordance with the requirements, the apparatus herein disclosed being merely illustrative.

While I have herein shown and described the improved apparatus as embodied in a typical form of construction, by way of example, it will be apparent that the construction may be varied in certain respects, within the purview of my invention. Therefore, without limitin myself in this respect, I claim:

1. An apparatus for handling objects, comprising: a support; a boom pivotally mounted on a substantially horizontal axis on said support to adapt it for angular adjustment; a crane arm pivoted on a vertical axis on said boom to adapt it to pivot in a horizontal plane; and a cable of a length substantially equal to the distance between having its opposite side members pivoted on a horizontal axi on said support to adapt the boom to pivot to various positions of angular adjustment; a holder pivoted on a horizontal axis extending between said side members; a crane arm pivoted on a vertical axis on said holder to adapt the arm to pivot in a horizontal plane; and a cable of a length substantially equal to the distance between the pivotal mounting of the boom and the pivotal mounting of the holder thereon, said cable being spaced from the boom .and connected between the holder and the support for maintaining said arm in horizontal position during all positions of angular adjustment of said boom.

3. An apparatus for handling objects, comprising: a support; a substantially Ushaped boom having its opposite side members pivoted on a horizontal axis on said support to adapt the boom to pivot to various positions of angular adjustment; a holder pivoted on a horizontal axis extending between said side members and provided with a segmental guide; a crane arm pivoted on a vertical axis on said holder to adapt the arm to pivot in a horizontal plane; and a cable having one end connected to the support and passing over said guide with its other end connected to said crane arm for supporting the latter, the radius of said guide being equal to the distance between said first mentioned horizontal axis and the point of connection of said one end of the cable on said support so that said crane arm is maintained in horizontal position during all positions of angular adjustment of said boom.

4. An apparatus for handling objects, comprise Ill) connected to said crane arm for supporting the latter, the arrangement being such that the length of cable extending between said guide and the point of connection of the cable on said support is maintained parallel to an imaginary line extending between said horizontal axes so that said crane arm is maintained in horizontal position at all times.

5. An apparatus for handlin objects, comprising: a support; a substantially U-shaped boom having its opposite side members pivoted on a horizontal axis on said support to adapt the boom to pivot to various positions of angular adjustment; a holder pivoted on a horizontal axis extending between said side members; a crane arm pivoted on a vertical axis on said holder to adapt the arm to pivot in a horizontal plane; a cable of a length substantially equal to the distance between the pivotal mounting of the boom and the pivotal mounting of the holder thereon, said cable being spaced from the boom and connected between the holder and the support for maintaining said arm in horizontal position during all positions of angular adjustment of said boom; and means for pivoting said crane arm on said vertical axis.

6. An apparatus as defined in claim 2, and including a pulley at the distal end of said crane arm; a guide element on said holder; a hoisting cable passing over said guide element and said pulley and adapted to be connected to an object to be lifted; and a winch on said support for Winding said hoisting cable to lift the object.

LOURIE L. EAKIN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 410,371 Moore Sept. 3, 1889 545,589 Kilgore Sept. 3, 1895 2,394,217 Tom Feb. 5, 1946 2,408,387 Gay et a1 Oct. 1, 1946 

